An Incarnated Radius Remnant
by ptl
Summary: After a cosmically botched summoning spell, Aincrad ended up in the seas of Remnant. What will the inhabitants do with a bunch of otherworldly gamers with the potential to equal or surpass them in power?
1. Prologue

This story, like all other stories, it begins with a spark, a move, whatever you call it. And in the infinite reaches of the omniverse, where there are a lot of variables, an even greater number of stories occur.

Like one in which a young and ungifted pink-haired noble at a magic academy tries to summon her own familiar, at least to show the others she isn't a Zero. However, she doesn't summon one. Neither a huge magical tree that comes from another world's virtual reality videogame, transporting the fairy players and NPCs and fusing the two worlds landscape, generating a whole new stew of political, religious and social problems.

In fact, she summons the flying castle from the game before that one.

However, in a nearby multiverse, the dragon gods of time and space were doing an all-out showdown in a space-time rift because one thought the other was invading the other's territory and viceversa, sending waves everywhere.

Those waves would interfere with the already confusing wibbly-wobbly timey-spacey-wimey stuff that is the omniverse/multiverse.

In short, the waves knock the flying castle out of its way, and it ends up in another reality whatsoever, saving up all the extra trouble to Halkeginia, a Zero being expelled, a lot of outrage when thousands of players disappear when in Fulldive and much more.

Let's hope that it ends up better than when Alfheim entered in Halkeginia or Insomnia in Remnant in other timelines.

_AN: This is what happens when you read Halkeginia Online, the fics that surge from it, fics where Aincrad is transported into another world and taking note that there is a crossover where the kingdom of Insomnia of FFXV was transported to Remnant._

_Yep. An ISOT. One of the most interesting subgenres that I could think of. What happens when a civilization or part of it lands in an alien world without notice and the consequences._

_Well, I simply thought what could happen if SAO players, people of our era in a low-fantasy lethal VRMMORPG, were to clash with the inhabitants of Remnant, a deadly world with advanced magitek, soul-powered warriors, animal people, soulless unending monsters and two immortals with magic powers from the Age of the Gods._

_The result was badass in my head. Only need to realize it in paper._

_Now, for the relative power levels between Aincridians and Remnantians:_

_**Low Level**__: Civilians-Huntsmen in training._

_**Mid Level:**__ Huntsmen in training-Professional Huntsmen._

_**High Level:**__ Professional Hunstmen-Elite Huntsmen-Magic Users._

_Like I said, these are approximate and are all done under the level 100 cap. The main SAOverse had the first arc's game finished prematurely, with the most powerful players in their 90ies. The boss in the Floor 1 bonus dungeon was estimated to be on par with the upper floors, which was enough to nearly one-shot two powerful and experimented fighters. They only reached Floor 75, leaving the mobs from upwards with possibly higher level, with a necessary upper level limit superior to 100 to at least survive there._

_The gamerverse allowed the exploration of the rest of the castle, allowing to reach the level cap. Last confirmed, Re: Hollow Fragment gives Aincrad a 300 level cap._

_Someone with that kind of power could be considered a demigod, infinitely one-shotting Salem till something revokes Salem's immortality or the OP player quits from boredom._

_Even someone in their 100s could be difficult to most powerful Grimm and Huntsmen, armies and vehicle-grade weaponry. Unless it's a kaiju-sized Grimm, a magic user, a WMD, or an entire army of elite Hunstmen or Grimm, those players will be mostly impune._

_That doesn't mean I curbstomp Remnant. While Aincrad players have Sword Skills, hammerspace, materials possibly better than those on Earth or Remnant and potential to become much more powerful than any other being of Remnant, sans Gods, remember Remnant has much more advanced technology than SAO Earth or our own; have a lot more versatility in battle with the mecha-shifting weapons, Dust and Semblances; and have centuries, even millennia, battling supernatural creatures, and while we have our fair share of incredibly bloody conflicts and devastating weaponry, the majority of SAO players were civilians put into a death game which forced them to become sharp while battling fantasy monsters, player killers and dungeon traps during two years._

_Oh, and Remnant has access to firearms and computing technology, something that SAO players didn't have in-game during those two years, which could prove problematic to low and mid level players until they have their own, which they will be quick to obtain._

_About Aura. Well, I don't know. I think high level stats and equipment are able to take on bullets. And even if they pierce skin, high HP equals superhuman durability. Not talk about HP regeneration. Maybe you could see half-naked Kirito either blocking bullets and blades with his skin alone or being a bullet sponge with a high pain tolerance, not dying with all the bullet holes or pointy and sharp things on him._

_If you have some ideas or recommendations of your own, I'm all ears._


	2. Chapter 1

_AN: For reference, this story begins sometime after RWBY's Volume 1 and after Yui's introduction mini arc. For clarification, in Aincrad/Earth is Monday, November 4th of 2024. Remnant doesn't have an official (yet) calendar so I'll put it in the year 80 a.W. (After War), using the Great War as reference. The day and month are the same as Aincrad so there won't be any time-related confusions and Remnant also shares some of Earth's festivities. About the power levels, I know how to explain it. Even if the castle and everything in there is now real, the Cardinal System hasn't been disabled, so it still influences everything SAO related, such as the stats, abilities and items. It could also influence NPC behavior though it would be somewhat difficult now with the newfound sentience of the Non Player Characters. In short, the Aincradians still somewhat operate on RPG rules, giving an advantage over Remnantians in growth and combat._

_As for Aura, I'm taking a SAO/Accel World take on it. The Fluctuating Light or Fluctlight, the collection of photons present in neurons' microtubules, the closest thing to a soul in SAO/AW, is what allows for Remnant's life to impose its imagination upon the world. To clarify, while the Gods left Remnant alongside the magic, their lingering energy allowed for organic life to develop reality altering powers through quantum manipulation, with their souls' image fueling them, resulting in Semblances. Aura is a secondary effect of that Incarnation, born from the subconscious desire to protect the mind and body of the user from the outside world, like an AT Field or Persona. The fact that Dust's elemental energy is reactive to Aura is a very convenient thing._

_Obviously, unlike the malleability of a digital world, the firm analogic nature of the "real world" limits the soul's potential, needing Aura to continue manifesting Incarnations upon the world, though some Semblances have effects that does not need much Aura, if not at all, at long term. Something similar to curses or blessings and closer to magic._

_That's also the reason AIs like Penny can generate Aura, by developing their own self-image in a quantum computer._

_Grimm cannot develop souls on a conceptual level. Even if they were to have Fluctlights and senses of self, they would still be soulless and don't generate Aura._

_The nature of souls will be relevant in the story and a point of study for the Aincradians. The question would be if they will awaken Auras and what effects would have on the world they're now in, considering their true nature._

_By the way, I would be grateful if you could inform me of in-universe lore of Aincrad. I know the Progressive novels talk about Aincrad's creation myth but Hollow Realization has more information about the subject. I don't own the game and I don't plan on watching a gameplay of it soon, so it could be appreciated._

It was sudden, one moment everyone in Aincrad was doing their own business and the next, a powerful earthquake affected the entire floating castle, throwing everyone into a panic. The static bursts and automated error messages didn't help at all. The Cardinal System was under attack by an unknown hacker and was desperately trying to repel it.

Suddenly a huge flash of light engulfed everyone, only to discover after that things have changed.

For one, not only were the players confused but also the NPCs and the majority of mobs, like if they just gained conscience. There's also the distressing fact that now their bodies are of flesh and blood, meaning that the Pain Absorption was disabled and the damage would be more realistic.

Somehow, they still retained their HUDs and menus apart from their stats and abilities. While they're relieved they're far from defenseless, it caused a huge confusion over if they're still in a game or not.

Oh, and they discovered that Aincrad is now a floating island over the ocean. And that the night sky over Aincrad had a broken moon now.

The biggest player guilds and NPC factions were now trying to reign over the chaos and discover what the heck happened. Don't need to say that the higher ups were overworked, overstressed or both.

But the one most puzzled or frustrated over everything was Heathcliff, the guildmaster of the Knights of the Blood, the most influential battle guild and the main leaders of the clearing efforts. He's also secretly Akihiko Kayaba, ambitious genius programer and inventor who created the death trap that was Sword Art Online and Aincrad in an effort to create his own world.

"So, despite suffering all these alterations, you still hold functionality, right?" And right now he's in his own private office, made soundproof with his GM privileges just in case, alongside a beautiful woman of apparently 20 years old that would remind someone of a roman or greek goddess with her looks.

She has black waved hair that reaches to her mid-back and silver eyes that seem to possess circles of data on their irises. Her body is well proportioned, so while not overexaggerated, she wouldn't look out of place if she worked as a model. She wears a white toga over a simple form fitting white dress hold together with a silver infinite brooch and elegant sandals. Kayaba would admit that she looked like a god-like AI present in some of his childhood games about a VRMMORPG that he hold dear in his heart and served as inspiration for SAO among other things, like Wizardry, for example.

Despite the minimalist design, the goddess-like look sounds fitting for she is an avatar body created for Kayaba to communicate with the Cardinal System, so she's effectively the Goddess of Aincrad, with Kayaba being its Creator.

The reason as for why he did it? He was an otaku and game designer at heart. So he was clearly influenced by anime and games having physical gods so that he would know what it would feel like. Even if she isn't canon to the lore he mostly wrote by himself, he and her would be considered the true gods.

It was also quite the experiment. Every week, the two reunite to discuss the periodical report: about if the NPC algorithms needed some changes; the drop ratio; the economy; some grand scale mission or event or just some bugs. Being the businessman he was, he would invite her over his office or some administrator-exclusive room alongside some appetizers to accompany.

It was obvious that Cardinal had an interest in human interaction and emotions. At the beginning, it was only Heathcliff who bothered to at least try to have a cordial relationship with a cold-hearted computer system, even if it was essentially roleplay. All media depicted that abuse of robots and AI lead to nasty machine rebellions, so he always tried to be respectful to those he suspected would have the potential to archieve sapience if not Singularity. A trait shared by his old colleague, Higa Takeru. Sometimes, he wonders how the one who introduced him to full-blown otakuhood was IRL.

It seems his expectations were not wrong, for Cardinal seems to pick up on human mannerisms and human emotions, which also made time for some philosophical discussions between man and machine. He even encouraged her to look and review all manners of pieces of media and essays about psychology and philosophy to see what her own conclusions and evolution would be.

As long as she doesn't turn on him obviously, Kayaba wasn't a fool. Having an unshackled immature AI around would spell doom for his plans and maybe all humanity. Luckily, she assured him that she follows her primary directives, the personality module she's developing isn't directly connected to the main process, lest she fills herself of errors with the contradictions between her programming and her developing self.

Kayaba was satisfied, so he programmed a routine that would leave her personality module intact from Aincrad's eventual deletion, allowing her to escape to the world wide web. When she questioned him about it, he told her that as scientist, he wouldn't allow an interesting case such as herself to go to waste.

Kayaba was sure he saw her blushing that day.

"Affirmative." the Goddess answered "Even after this… Transference, I still maintain control over various of the core processes." Then she frowns "Though now, I think it will be difficult to influence NPC behavior. Their thought patterns are now analogous to organic lifeforms like the players."

Heathcliff brought a hand to his chin. "What about the mobs? A majority of them were programmed to give the impression of non sapience to them."

Cardinal brought a digital screen and showed it to Heathcliff "I can still control a great part of the mob population, including Floor and Field Bosses though those with scripted backstories like the Mission and Event ones will prove to be more difficult to reign in, due to most of them being considered sapients. Though I hypothesize I can subconsciously influence them. Would need more tests, though."

"Approved." he said "We are already at the mercy of the unknown, we don't need more trouble, especially from inside." While he somewhat is giddy that Aincrad is real now, does not mean he's at control. His plan was meticulously made so that he would enforce his rules without any interference. That's why he sealed the Mental Health Counseling Programs. They would have interfered with his agenda, even if their role was of simple psychological help. Aincrad wouldn't be realistic if the emotions borned from the possibility of death were to be solved by computers, not by humans with the capacity to push themselves above their traumas or being devoured by their own demons. "The safe zone system is still functioning, right?"

"Of course. The barriers and guardians are active." Then she frowned "Sir, there was an incident that happened some days prior, it's about the MHCPs."

Heathcliff blinked "What about them?"

"The day 1st of November, Yui-MCHP001 escaped from quarantine towards the 22nd Floor, where she was found by two high-ranking players: Kirito and Asuna, of which you're already acquainted."

Heathcliff's interest grew. If those two, especially Kirito, made contact with a rogue AI, he should have known immediately. Why Cardinal didn't tell him until now, he doesn't know. Maybe she didn't put much urgency into it.

"MCHP001 was brought to the couple's house while unconscious and tended for after being diagnosed with amnesia."

"Wait." he interrupted "Amnesia? For a program? Is that even possible?"

"Later analysis discovered that she was being corrupted by errors. The hypothesis is that being unable to execute her function, left her stressed out by both the players despair and the contradictions in her program." she informed "You of all people, should have already known that programs unable to end their processes correctly, end up stressed and propense to errors. Humans are worse due to their emotions. And because the Mental Health Counseling Programs are designed to have a wide emotional and response range to aid in their functions…"

"They will eventually bug out, posing a risk to the system, due to being closer to the central resources to function." Heathcliff summarized. Maybe he should have shut down the MHCPs instead of simply forbidding them access to the players. He admits that being unable to do anything while having the capacity to do something must be torture. While the players are still essentially prisoners, they can still fight for their freedom while the MHCPs were forced to observe everything, being infected by humanity's dark emotions without any capability to act to pacify them.

He sighs. He cannot unmake that decision now. He'll just have to make due with what's at his disposal and try to solve it. "What happened to her?"

"While searching for the leader of the Aincrad Liberation Force, Kirito, Asuna and MHCP001 accompanied a high-ranking member of the guild through the Black Iron Palace's Hidden Dungeon at the 1st Floor, where they encountered the boss and the console it was guarding." the Goddess sighs "I don't see the logic in putting administrator tools in player-accessible areas, even if they're well defended. You're the highest rank administrator not to say the only one. You don't even need them."

Heathcliff shrugged "Maybe I didn't expect anyone to find them. Not to say they'd lack authority to access them. But I digress, continue."

"... While the Fatal Scythe was about to kill the two high-level players, MHCP001 recovered her memories while making contact with the console, promptly using an administrator account to delete the boss, saving the players. Though that made the error disposal system take note of her and dealt with appropriately: by deletion."

Cardinal's frowned with a tinge of irritation, something that the game master didn't also thought he would see "Kirito made use of the administrator account to try to prevent deletion, though he was quickly banned, not before saving MHCP001's core data into an item format. The nerve of his! If it wasn't for his high-rank and the fact you're protecting him, I would have transported that hacker to prison, devoid of everything."

Heathcliff couldn't help but chuckle. It seems Kirito-kun continues to impress him. Brazenly defying the system to try to defend someone who wasn't human to begin with, his determination making the Creator certain that he chose the appropriate Hero that will slay him, the Villain of this story. But maybe that duel may have to be postponed until this grand scale abnormality is solved.

"Is there some possibility of some other MHCP-related incident occurring again?"

"After that fiasco, the rest of MHCPs were completely quarantined without access to the system, some even being deactivated or deleted because of far gone they were. Though Strea-MHCP002 somehow managed to escape by bonding herself to an unused player account, three months after the game launch according to logs. She managed to escape notice despite having some of her functions by simply acting as an ordinary player and not using high-level commands." she tiredly rubbed her face, in face of those system-rebelling raspcallions "Right now, I don't know what to do with her."

"Leave her for now. If she didn't call attention to herself for fear to probable deletion or quarantine, I doubt she will do it now. Add some extra surveillance for her, just in case. And block the exits and entrances of the Dungeons, even teleporting the players present in them to Safe Zones. Put all the Orange ones not imprisoned into separated Zones closed off to prevent panic and ensure they don't take profit of it. Try to influence the NPCs and mobs to don't exacerbate any type of conflict with the players. Do you have some new information about these new environment?" He ordered as an experienced leader and administrator in these times of crisis.

"Since taking note of the situation, I've been doing long-range scans." the ever dutiful, multitasking AI providing an immediate answer "So far, I've detected a wireless communications network and connected to it. By lack of time and being careful of probable intrusions, I've only accessed the superficial and public data, but that was enough to ascertain its global scale and the new world we're now in."

"And pray, what in what world did we end up in?" Asked the cautious and very curious Kayaba, while placing his holded hands near his face in an intrigued pose.

Cardinal smirked and with a gesture of her hand, innumerable screens full of information appeared in the air. The main one showed a world map with various continents and their names, two of them resembling dragons, and with four dots showing the locations and names of relevant places. An extra glowing dot appeared to indicate that Aincrad was at the east of some place of the continent of Sanus called Vale.

"This planet is called Remnant and it's nothing compared to Earth."

"The sooner we prepare ourselves the better, because we're surrounded by dangers, both human and not."

_AN: Yup Cardinal has human form, I have a fascination with AIs. Think whatever you want. A lot of them would think the same as me. *cough* Ejem, right now we've introduced a little part of the clusterfuck Aincrad did end up in, especially from a system administrator standpoint. Next will be how the players, some NPCs and various Remnantians react to all of this. Characters from the gamerverse will appear as well, if Strea's mention wasn't enough. The next chapter of this story will be put on hold till I continue my other stories or I have some solid idea for this one. Thanks for the support in my other stories, NOW I think I'm ready to continue The New PE Teacher, with Renegade of Zero and FateCreation being some of the next candidates in line. I also began the next chapter of How NOT To Summon The Terror of Death, reviving once more my passion of .hack, which partly inspired me to continue with this story. And for the fandoms, the only things I find superior of .hack over SAO, are the power levels. The rest, I love both series the same. I have preference to series and franchises that deal with digital worlds like Code Lyoko, TRON, Digimon, Megaman Battle Network... I wouldn't be writing a SAO fanfic if I didn't like. And yes, SAO might not be perfect but I cannot understand how a very criticized series have such a huge success with over more than twenty light novel volumes, both main series and spin-offs; a decent IRL video game franchise; anime series and movie… I understand that the Abridged show was created to make fun of those flaws and try to improve upon them, but I don't know if I would bear watching it._

_I love the Abridged version of Fate Stay Night: Unlimited Blade Works ("100% PERCENT MAXIMUM CHILL!"), though, and may watch Hellsing Ultimate Abridged one day of these._

_So for people who doesn't like SAO but read fanfiction, need a reminder that the Internet is full of inexperienced and flawed writers, much more in number than the professional ones and that those who write masterpieces in the net by talent, constant practice or both, a lot of them do it as a hobby and a love letter to those series we held dear in our hearts. We readers should do constructive criticism to drive those non-profit writers to a better way, so that they may regale us with new or existent fascinating stories in the future._

_Sorry for the rant, was a spur of the moment, but I really mean it._

_Though I think the only thing we cannot influence too much (and with lot of reason) are the writers' timetables, mine included. *sigh* I may not need a job but I'm still busy with university, entertainment and my tendency to procrastinate. My newfound timetable and recent acquisition of Astral Chain may have allowed me to become more active, including in writing stories but I cannot guaranty a regular schedule for uploads._

_Good night!_


End file.
